Final score

1 March 2019 20:30

Cagliari
43' Pavoletti
30' Perisic o.g.
2 - 1
Inter
38' Martínez
Referee: Luca Banti / Linesmen: Costanzo, Manganelli / Fourth official: Fourneau / Assistants: Doveri, Vivenzi
Watch highlights

Minute Text commentary
47' Vecino's effort following Nainggolan's cross ends up safely in Cragno's hands, with the referee then blowing the half-time whistle. Cagliari are ahead at the break following Pavoletti's goal after Lautaro Martinez briefly cancelled out Ceppitelli's opener
47' Nainggolan's shot is deflected behind for a corner
46' Lautaro Martinez's left-footed volley ends up out of play for a Cagliari goal kick
45' Two minutes have been added on here
43' Cagliari retake the lead as Pavoletti converts Srna's cross
41' The Rossoblu somehow manage to clear Perisic's dangerous cross out for a corner
40' A ricochet falls in favour of Faragò, who doesn't connect with the ball well on the volley at the far post and fires off target
38' GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLL! Lautaro heads Nainggolan's cross through the legs of Cragno and into the back of the net: it's 1-1!!!
32' Handanovic saves Joao Pedro's header, with Faragò then being unable to force the ball home
30' Ceppitelli heads home a free kick to give the Rossoblu the lead
29' Skriniar is booked for a very soft foul despite winning the ball
27' Nainggolan's ball is hit towards goal first time by Lautaro, but it goes well over
26' Brozovic's cross from the left is too high for any Inter player to get on the end of
22' Politano's free kick is too long and Cragno claims
20' A late foul by Joao Pedro on Lautaro Martinez is punished: Banti pulls out a yellow card
18' Inter counter through Perisic, who looks for Politano. Cagliari eventually deal with it, however
15' Cagliari have a chance as Handanovic is unable to hold Pavoletti's effort, but Skriniar gets to the loose ball before Joao Pedro and clears the ball, also winning a foul in the process
13' The match momentarily comes to a halt as the crowd at the Sardegna Arena get to their feet to commemorate Davide Astori
11' A chance for Perisic as Politano finds him at the back post, but Cragno saves the Croatian's volley!
10' Faragò meets a cross from the right with a diving header, but he doesn't find the back of the net
8' Cigarini goes into the referee's notebook for a late challenge on Nainggolan
5' The match has been played at a high tempo in the opening five minutes, but no clear-cut chances have been created so far
1' The match begins at the Sardegna Arena: the home side get the ball rolling. Forza Inter!
Minute Text commentary
52' The final whistle is blown at the Sardegna Arena: Cagliari pick up the three points thanks to goals from Ceppitelli and Pavoletti. Lautaro Marinez's header wasn't enough for the Nerazzurri
51' Candreva gets to Politano's cross first but it's off target
50' Cragno is booked for time-wasting
49' Ranocchia's header from Perisic's cross goes wide
47' Skriniar fouls Despodov in the penalty box, but Barella fires the spot kick over!
45' There will be six minutes of added time
44' Candreva shoots from distance, but the ball sails over
42' Spalletti turns to his bench for the last time: Ranocchia takes Brozovic's place
41' Cagliari make a substitution: Padoin comes on for Ionita
40' Lautaro hits the post! El Toro does well to get a shot away in the penalty area, but Cragno tips his effort onto the post!
38' Spalletti makes another change: Asamoah is replaced by Candreva
37' What a chance for the Nerazzurri! Borja Valero fires over from a great position in the penalty area!
36' Despodov replaces Joao Pedro for Cagliari
34' Another player enters Banti's notebook, this time Pavoletti for a foul on Skriniar
33' Lautaro Martinez heads D'Ambrosio's cross just wide. Inter so close to a leveller there!
31' Faragò brings down Asamoah and is shown a yellow card
30' A Nerazzurri corner threatens the Rossoblu's goal, but eventually nothing comes of it
26' Brozovic is booked for a tactical foul
25' Maran turns to his bench for the first time: Bradaric is on in Cigarini's place
24' Lautaro Martinez meets Nainggolan's cross ahead of Ceppitelli but can't find the back of the net
23' Spalletti makes his first change: Borja Valero is on for Vecino
20' Vecino receives a yellow card after fouling Barella
17' Lautaro Martinez can't quite find the right coordination as Perisic finds him in the penalty area, and the chance goes begging
13' Faragò's shot from a long way out is saved by Handanovic
11' Inter come close twice, but Cragno denies both Politano and D'Ambrosio
8' Politano strikes the ball over the bar from distance
4' Lautaro Martinez drives forward but fires off target
1' The second half begins at the Sardegna Arena with no changes having been made at the break

Ranocchia
4.76
4.76
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Handanovic
4.42
4.42
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
D'Ambrosio
3.39
3.39
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Brozovic
3.32
3.32
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Perisic
3.22
3.22
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Candreva
2.81
2.81
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Skriniar
3.67
3.67
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Valero
3.71
3.71
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Vecino
3.11
3.11
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Nainggolan
5.36
5.36
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Politano
3.33
3.33
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Martínez
6.52
6.52
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Asamoah
3.25
3.25
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
de Vrij
3.93
3.93
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X
YOUR RATING
Average rating 3.91 SEND RATINGS
5 shots on target 6
8 shots off target 13
12 fouls committed 9
1 corners 5
1 offsides 1
40% ball possession 60%

Inter have won their last four Serie A matches against Cagliari, scoring 14 goals in the process (3.5 on average for match).

Cagliari have conceded at least once in their last seven league games – it’s the current longest streak (level to Parma) among teams in the Serie A 2018/19.

The last time Cagliari picked up 24 or fewer points after MD25 was back in 2014/15 (20 points) – they were relegated in Serie B at the end of that season.

In the last MD against Fiorentina, Inter won their first points from losing positions this season – meanwhile, Cagliari have never lost a match from a winning position in Serie A during 2018/19 (W5 D3).

Cagliari (11) and Inter (10) are two of the three teams to have scored the most goals from crosses in the current Serie A campaign (Atalanta have the most with 12).

Cagliari’s manager Rolando Maran has lost all six matches against Luciano Spalletti in Serie A: the current Inter coach is the only manager Maran has faced at least six times and lost each time against.

Cagliari’s Leonardo Pavoletti has netted seven headed goals in the current Serie A campaign – as many as Inter have in total.

Ivan Perisic will play his 150th match for Inter in all competitions (currently on 149) – only against Chievo (six goals) has the Croatian player scored more than against Cagliari (three goals) in Serie A.

 

wins(18) draws(18) defeats(7)

CAGLIARI - Inter fell to a tough defeat on matchday 26 of the Serie A TIM season. The Nerazzurri lost 2-1 at Cagliari, with all of the goals coming in the first half. Ceppitelli opened the scoring for the hosts before Lautaro Martinez equalised, only for Pavoletti to respond with what would turn out to be the winning goal. The result means that Inter remain third on 47 points, while waiting to see the results in the AC Milan and Lazio games.

The match was intense from the off with the hosts showing an aggressive attitude. The first chances came in the tenth minute. Ionita couldn’t hit the target with his header from a Srna cross before Perisic forced Cragno into a save with a powerful but central effort. In the 12th minute, Cigarini ran the risk of being sent off after a late challenge on Nainggolan but he was let off while already on a booking. In the 13th minute, play briefly stopped as the whole stadium paid tribute to Davide Astori in an emotional moment after he passed away on 4 March a year ago. Cagliari were dangerous straight after with link-up play between Joao Pedro and Pavoletti but Handanovic responded to deny the centre-forward. The deadlock was broken in the 31st minute. Cigarini played in a deep free kick which Ceppitelli got to ahead of Perisic to leave Handanovic with no chance. Not long after, Inter ran the risk of going two down but Handanovic saved from Joao Pedro and Faragò fired over from close range. After the danger had passed, the Nerazzurri drew level. In the 38th minute, Lautaro Martinez got ahead of everyone at the near post to nod on Nainggolan’s cross and beat Cragno. At the end of the half, Inter also had a chance to go ahead when Pisacane went close to turning a low Perisic cross into his own net. However, it was the hosts who scored before the whistle to restore their lead. In the 43rd minute, Pavoletti turned home a Srna cross with a spectacular volley that picked out the bottom corner and it was 2-1 for the Rossoblu at the break.

The teams came out for the second half with no changes having been made at the break. Inter immediately tried to put Cagliari under pressure: in the 50th minute, Lautaro turned in the final third and drove forward, only to then fire over from the edge of the area. The Nerazzurri had a double chance five minutes later: Lautaro managed to protect the ball and find Politano in the penalty box, but the Italian was denied by Cragno, with the Cagliari goalkeeper then also going on to save El Toro’s effort just seconds later. Cagliari then managed to hit back as they had two attempts in a matter of minutes: first, Handanovic kept out Faragò’s long-range strike before Pavoletti struck the ball over the bar when well placed. With Inter struggling to threaten the home side’s goal, Spalletti brought on Borja Valero for Vecino after 68 minutes in an attempt to shake things up. Ten minutes later, Inter came close to levelling the match: Lautaro got on the end of D’Ambrosio’s cross but put the ball inches wide. The Nerazzurri had yet another chance in the 83rd minute: Borja received the ball in the box from Asamoah but then shot over the bar from an excellent position after getting the better of an opposition player. Candreva replaced Asamoah in the final stages as Inter ratcheted up the pressure. In the 85th minute, Lautaro did well to control Nainggolan’s low cross and fire towards goal, but Cragno was there to tip the ball onto the post. Spalletti then made his last change: Ranocchia came on for Brozovic. After 91 minutes, Skrinar brought down substitute Despodiv in the area and Cagliari were awarded a penalty. Barella stepped up to take it but fired well over the bar. Inter continued to push forward until the 97th minute and had a final chance when Candreva headed Politano’s cross over, but ultimately it wasn’t enough. The final whistle was blown and Cagliari ran out 2-1 winners.

A hard defeat to take, but the Nerazzurri need to put it immediately behind them: on Thursday 7 March, Spalletti’s side will travel to Frankfurt to face Eintracht at the Round of 16 stage of the Europa League. Following this, Inter will once again be back in league action when they face Spal at San Siro on Sunday 10 March.

Now and forever, #ForzaInter!

CAGLIARI 2-1 INTER

Goals: 31' Ceppitelli (C), 38' Lautaro (I), 43' Pavoletti (C)

CAGLIARI: 28 Cragno; 33 Srna, 19 Pisacane, 23 Ceppitelli, 3 Pellegrini; 21 Ionita (86' 20 Padoin), 8 Cigarini (70' 6 Bradaric), 24 Faragò; 18 Barella; 10 Joao Pedro (81' 32 Despodov), 30 Pavoletti

Substitutes: 1 Rafael, 16 Aresti, 12 Cacciatore, 17 Oliva, 22 Lykogiannis, 26 Leverbe, 36 Doratiotto, 77 Thereau

Coach: Rolando Maran

INTER: 1 Handanovic; 33 D'Ambrosio, 6 De Vrij, 37 Skriniar, 18 Asamoah (83' 87 Candreva); 8 Vecino(68' 20 Borja Valero) , 77 Brozovic (87' 13 Ranocchia); 16 Politano, 14 Nainggolan, 44 Perisic; 10 Lautaro

Substitutes: 27 Padelli, 5 Gagliardini, 15 Joao Mario, 21 Cedric, 23 Miranda, 29 Dalbert, 61 Colidio

Coach: Luciano Spalletti

Bookings: Cigarini (C), Joao Pedro (C), Skriniar (I), Vecino (I), Brozovic (I), Pavoletti (C), Cragno (C)

Added time: 2' + 7'

Referee: Banti

Assistants: Costanzo; Manganelli

Fourth official: Fourneau

VAR officials: Doveri; Vivenzi

starting lineups

Cragno 28 1 Handanovic
Srna 33 33 D'Ambrosio
Pisacane 19 6 de Vrij
Ceppitelli 23 37 Skriniar
Pellegrini 3 18 Asamoah
Ionita 21 8 Vecino
Cigarini 8 77 Brozovic
Faragò 24 16 Politano
Barella 18 14 Nainggolan
Joao Pedro 10 44 Perisic
Pavoletti 30 10 Martínez

substitutes

Rafael 1 27 Padelli
Aresti 16 5 Gagliardini
Bradaric 6 13 Ranocchia
Cacciatore 12 15 Joao Mario
Oliva 17 20 Valero
Padoin 20 21 Soares
Lykogiannis 22 23 Miranda
Leverbe 26 29 Estevão
Despodov 32 61 Colidio
Doratiotto 36 87 Candreva
Thereau 77

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